Eavesdropping
by AdmHawthorne
Summary: Someone over hears a conversation between Jane and Maura.


**I hadn't done it yet, and, after 70+ stories, I thought it was time. Here's my take on a Mary Sue. You've been warned, though I don't think it's as bad as it could be. ;-)**

**Characters aren't mine. They belong to Turner/TNT, Tess, and the rest.**

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><p>I normally go to the café down by my apartment with someone on Friday afternoon after work. Either I take my cousin or one of my friends, and we'll go sit by the open coffee bar and munch on a piece of cake, some cheese fries, or nachos. It's a regular ritual for me, actually. I think I'm considered a regular because the server that's there when I normally am, Sam, always smiles when he sees me walks in. It's gotten to the point where he doesn't bother to ask where I want to sit or what I want. He just asks which of the three foods it's going to be as he walks up with a glass of water to go with my coffee.<p>

But, today I left work early because I needed the break. Sometimes you just have to play hooky. It's Friday and, despite the fact that no one could go with me and I knew Sam wasn't there yet, I went to the little café anyway. I wanted the coffee, and I was sort of looking forward to reading my book and munching on my cheese fries alone for a change.

That plan worked for about 10 minutes. Then, they walked in.

I'm not going to lie. I like to people watch. I do it all the time. I find people much more interesting than movies, television, or my book. I like to play this game where I try to piece together their entire life stories just based on what I see and overhear, if I'm lucky enough to be close enough to hear them.

I got lucky today.

As soon as they walked in, they caught my eye. One was a tall, dark haired brunette. Lanky frame, sharp features, with wild curly hair that looked like the only thing keeping it tame was a prayer. She was dressed in slacks, a very form fitting blue under shirt, and a blazer that she wasn't bothering to actually wear. The gun and badge on her hip is what caught my eye first, though. That's hard to miss. The other woman was much shorter. Her heels, which were at least 4 inches high, were giving her the height she needed to be eye level with the other woman. The shorter woman had very light, almost a honey blonde coloring to her hair, and it was perfectly styled. Everything on her was perfectly styled. I recognized the handbag, some designer that costs more than 3 of my car payments. The outfit was clearly tailored, and, unlike the dark haired brunette who slouched a little, the honey blonde held herself ramrod straight. She smelled of money, but she didn't reek. You could tell she had it, but she wasn't flaunting it.

Both women had to be in their late 30's, and both women were looking at each other like they were the only people in the place. The café was packed.

When the server sat the pair across from me, I made a mental note to give her an extra big tip if for nothing else but the fact she gave me some incredible eye candy to look at over the top of my book. There are more tactful ways to put it, but these two women were _hot_, and I _was not_ complaining that they were in my line of sight, nor was I complaining that I would have to pass them every time I went to the coffee bar, which would be often.

Life was suddenly super fantastically awesome.

Life became even better when the taller one opened her mouth to speak. "Maura," she said loud enough to be heard over the roar of the lunchtime crowd, "are you sure about this?'

My first mental note was that her voice was husky, low, and something I would happily listen to if she wanted to just turn around and read the phonebook to me. My second mental note was that the honey blonde's name was Maura. My third note was that I wasn't leaving until they did because whatever they were about to talk about was absolutely none of my business, but it was clearly juicy gossip material if the cop's facial expression of anxiety and worry were any indication. From my angle, I could see both of their profiles. I was at a good angle. The server was going to get an awesome tip from me.

"Yes, Jane, I'm certain," Maura replied with a patient air as she settled the napkin on her lap and picked up the menu.

Next mental note, the cop's name is Jane.

The damned noise of the lunchtime crowd muffled their conversation, but bits and pieces of it filtered my way as I sat there sipping my coffee and "reading" my book. Watching them, it was clear there was something going on there. They sat next to each other instead of across the way. The cop, Jane, kept blushing off and on. The other one, Maura, at one point captured Jane's hand and held it as they talked, and, let me tell you, there was enough eye sex between the two of them to make me want a cigarette when it was all over, and I don't even smoke.

When I went up to the coffee bar for a refill, a _very_ slow refill, I heard Jane say, "What if it doesn't work? What if we go through all the crap that you know we'll go through, and it doesn't work?"

"I would argue that it's already working. If we were to take into consideration the amount of time we spend with each other, how we spend that time, and the amount of physical contact we already share, we are essentially dating now, if that is how we should choose to define it," Maura replied. I couldn't see them because the coffee bar faced away from the tables, but I'd have killed to have seen what was going on behind me at that very moment. I "accidentally" had a spill and insisted on helping the server clean it up.

"The only thing we're missing," continued the honey blonde, "is the sex."

"Maura," The cop was practically hissing it. Someone was uncomfortable. "We are in public!"

"I doubt anyone can hear us, Jane, and, if they can, I doubt they're paying attention," came the matter-of-fact reply. Oh, if only they knew. This was getting better than a daytime soap opera. Of course, the spill was cleaned up way too quickly for my liking, and I had to go back to my table.

They held hands, they talked in low voices. The worry on the cop's face was slowly being replaced by what I can only call adoration. They honey blonde had never had anything but a look of adoration for the cop. They had it bad for each other. A blind man could see that. Fortunately, I wasn't blind, and I was having a hard time remembering to turn the pages of my book.

As the lunchtime crowd died down, it started to get easier to get snippets of what they were saying.

"Jane, I'm not worried. I trust you. I've always trusted you," Maura said just before the food arrived.

"I don't want to mess this up. I don't want this to turn out badly and then I never get to see you anymore. I don't think I'd handle that all that well." The cop frowned as she ran her fingers over the back of her hand. It was clearly a nervous gesture, and there was something up with her hands. The next time I passed by for coffee, I was going to try to take a look. My curiosity was getting the best of me on that one.

"Don't worry, sweetie, I won't let you mess this up. It's too important to the both of us for you to, as you say, cut and run because you're scared. We'll get through this just as we have everything thing else," the honey blonde reassured.

The laugh from the cop was more of a humorless chuckle. "Yeah, you being kidnapped by the mob hitman that happens to be your sperm donor and me shooting myself in the gut are a little different than this. _This_," she said as she motioned between them, "could really hurt us if…"

The server came to check on me. Her tip went down a little.

I had to have a pleasant conversation with Sam when he came in for his shift, which was just a moment after my server walked away from the table. I think Sam's great, but, at that instant, I couldn't care less how anything in his life was going. I was missing the good parts of the conversation between those two women. Their body language, what I could see of it, was telling me they were reaching some kind of conclusion, and, frankly, I wanted to know what it was. They were inching closing to each other with each passing second, though I don't think they realized it.

Their meal was done, and I couldn't tell if they had ordered dessert or not. What I could tell was that Sam was blocking my view. Finally, he went off to do his thing, and I went for another refill.

"Jane, there are plenty of lesbian couples that have spent their lives happily committed to one another. I don't understand your concern," Maura's voice was tense.

"People judge, Maur, and it's hard enough to deal with it because of my job. I mean, I can handle it, don't get me wrong. It's just… what about you?" She calls her 'Maur'; I considered that it sounded my like 'more' coming from that husky voice. If _I_ were 'Maur', I'd do things all the time to hear the cop tell me 'more', I mean call me 'Maur'. "Hold on, let me get some coffee."

I froze. I was standing at the coffee bar looking like I was contemplating what flavor roast to try next, and I completely froze. I had no idea what I was doing or what I should be doing. So, when the cop walked up beside me, my first reaction was a deer-in-headlights nod. Luckily, my eyes flicked down to her gun, and she thought that was why I suddenly paled. "Hey," she said to me, "don't worry about it unless you've got a reason." She gave me a smirk. I was envious of the honey blonde. I bet she got that smirk a lot. "Unless you've got a reason to worry about it."

"I… um… no?" It was all I could sputter out.

She chuckled at me. "Is that a question?"

"I'm sorry. I don't often run into cops. I might be a little shell shocked." That was lame, but it was the best I could come up with.

"I'm a detective, actually." She shook her head. "What's good?"

"Cherry chocolate kiss if you're into that sort of thing." _I_ smirked then because _she_ suddenly blushed. "Or, if not, I think the hazelnut vanilla is pretty good, too. I come here all the time. I love this place." I stepped up to the hazelnut vanilla as she went for the cherry chocolate kiss. It was my chance to check out her hands. They were scarred. Small, perfect scars right in the middle of the back of her hands. I noticed as she added an ungodly amount of sugar to her coffee that there were matching scars on her palms. Interesting.

I went back to my table. Another mental note, the cop was a detective.

The crowd was thinning out. There were just a handful of customers now, and I could hear the conversation they were having clear as day. I had no clue what was going on in my book, but I knew I wanted the detective cop woman to get with it and just kiss the honey blonde. The eye sex and tension were making _me_ squirmy.

"Your parents love you, Jane. I don't think they're going to disown you should you decide to move forward with me," Maura said after finishing her bite of chocolate cake they were sharing.

"I think you're right." Jane sipped her coffee, watching with a sharp eye as Maura licked the fork clean of icing. "It might take Ma a little while, but she'll come around." She licked her lips. I licked my lips. The honey blonde kept licking the fork. I'm pretty sure the smaller woman knew exactly what she was doing to the lanky brunette. If Jane decided to go through with it, the detective was in for a run for her money.

"What would help? How can I assure you any more than I already have that this is a viable possibility for us? That it is entirely possible for us to make this work?" Maura took another bit of cake. My phone rang.

I suddenly hated my phone.

It was my girlfriend. She was off work and wanted to know if I was at the café yet. I told her yes. She told me she would be there shortly. I was both irritated and excited. After you've been with the same woman for almost a decade, you sometimes take her for granted. I try not to do that with her. Right then, I was just annoyed that she kept me from hearing what Jane needed to convince her to date Maura.

Sometimes, I wish life was more like Tivo because that was a scene I'd loved to have been able to playback.

"It's just… I don't know." Jane waved in the air as if she were trying to erase something. She was fidgety. I felt bad for her.

"You're scared. It's okay, Jane. I understand." Maura gave Jane's arm a gentle pat.

"No, I'm not scared. I'm… cautious." I liked this detective. She had spunk, but she was clearly terrified.

"I can tell based on your…"

"No, Maur. Don't do it. Don't googlemouth me right now. Please? I don't think I can handle it." Googlemouth? I didn't know, but I wanted to. I wanted to know _everything_ about these two. They were better than a bad romance novel. "I just… okay, yes. I'm scared. I mean, I don't even _know_ another lesbian couple."

Apparently, I wasn't the only one who noticed she said 'another lesbian couple' because the honey blonde's eyebrow shot up, though she was tactful enough not to point out the slip. "Would it be helpful if you did? I'm certain we could meet another couple," she used the same terminology. This was one smart chick, this Maura person, "there are several places we could go that help people like us become acquainted with that social group."

More coffee time. I was drinking coffee like some people eat popcorn. I was probably never going to sleep again, but I just didn't care.

At the coffee bar, I really was standing there trying to decide what flavor to get. The couple was being quiet and contemplative behind me, so I wasn't in a rush to get back to my table. Arms wrapping around me from behind and a kiss to the side of my neck startled me so badly I nearly dropped my coffee cup before I recognized the feel of my girlfriend coming in for a surprise attack. "Sorry, hon, I didn't mean to scare you. You seem jumpy, though, how many cups of coffee have you had already?"

I turned in her arms, a big goofy grin plastered on my face as I kissed her hello. "I honestly don't know. A lot?"

"Holy cow," I could hear the detective comment, but I didn't know what they were talking about.

"Jane, perhaps…"

"Hon?" My girlfriend still hadn't let go of me, and I had obviously missed something.

"Sorry, Babe, what did you say?" I frowned.

"I said, 'Maybe you should stop for a little while?'" She gave me a questioning look.

"Nah. Let me grab another cup, and I'll go sit down." I pointed to our table, and she made her way over, shaking her head at my lack of self-control with regards to my coffee intake.

As I was passing the couple's table on the way back to my own, the voice of the honey blonde caught my attention. "Excuse me?" She was louder than normal, so I turned to the table instead of trying to not make eye contact. My heart skipped a beat, or maybe it was the coffee, but she was talking to me. "I'm sorry to bother you, but may we ask you a question."

"Maura," Jane's voice was low and full of warning.

"Sure thing. You want more coffee advice?" I gave what I hoped was a friendly smile to them both.

"No, though thank you for the offer. I was wondering how long you and your girlfriend have been together," Maura asked, her head tilted slightly to the side. It was cute.

"A while, 7 years soon. Why do you ask?"

"We were trying to find a lesbian couple with some experience so that we could gather data, and I thought, perhaps, we could speak with you?"

"Oh my God, Maura! Really?" The detective looked as though she'd had 100 volts run through her chair.

I just smirked. "Well, maybe. I don't normally volunteer up my personal life for research purposes. Let me ask you this: are you two thinking of giving it a go, or are you just curious about lesbians?" I couldn't help myself.

"I think you already know the answer to that question," came the honey blonde's reply.

I was going to try to play it as smooth as I could. "Why would I know that?"

"Because you've been listening in on our conversation since we arrived, though I must give you credit. You're very discreet." She gave me a smile, and I knew I was completely busted. I was right, this woman was smart.

"Really? You've been listening in this whole time? Where do you get off…"

"Jane, she's seated right next to us. It would be difficult _not_ to hear us." Maura swooped in for a save.

After clearing my throat a few times, I decided to just answer truthfully. It seemed the best course of action. "I'd be happy to. Would you like for us to join you? My girlfriend and I are always happy to help a new couple. It's hard enough without walking in completely blind."

"That would be lovely, thank you." Maura nodded, and I flagged my girlfriend to come over.

"Babe, we have another conversion, I think ," I said once she was standing next to me.

"Oh? Do we get another toaster, or was this a freebie?" She wrapped an arm around my waist.

"Freebie, but we might get a toaster later." I leaned into her embrace. Jane shifted uncomfortably, and Maura smiled at the show of affection.

We introduced ourselves, and then they introduced themselves.

"I'm Dr. Maura Isles," the honey blonde offered her hand as my girlfriend and I took our seats at their table.

"I'm Jane Rizzoli." Jane nodded hello, not shaking hands. "So, 7 years? Can you… I mean, how have you two… how do you deal with it? Not each other, I mean, you know, everything else?"

It was a good starting question, and the rest of the conversation was even better as far as starting conversations go. After speaking with them for another hour, I had faith that they would work it out. That kind of love, adoration, and care are a rare thing, and I can't imagine they would pass it up. In fact, I don't believe Maura will let Jane, which, frankly, is a good thing.

I can't wait to get their wedding invitation.

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><p><strong>Thank you for humoring me. Reviews are welcomed.<strong>


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